Moving and Packing Services 101: Loading a Moving Truck

Loading a box truck properly is hard work, but also an art form. Most people who have loaded a box truck or will in the future, more than likely are going to end up causing a gigantic mess. It isn’t the easiest thing to master this art form. Which is why many expected movers hire moving and packing services. If you would like to avoid this mess altogether, we are happy to provide our moving company in Nashville to assist you. If you are a go-getter, and want to sweat a lot while exhausting yourself, then use this guide as a source of helpful tips.

First, think about how much stuff you are moving. Whether you’re searching for small moving companies or corporate relocation services in Nashville, the size of the move helps to determine whether or not you need to hire moving and packing services and how many professional movers you’ll need. If you have a small 1 to 2 bedroom apartment with 10-25 boxes, you will probably be just fine with a 16ft box truck. If you have a larger 2 to 3 bedroom apartment, going with a 26ft box truck would be suitable. Rule of thumb is an average furnished 1,500 square foot residence will fit into a single 26ft box truck. If there is a substantial amount of items in an attic or garage, you may have more than one 26ft truck worth.

Before we get to loading the truck, we want to make sure you are prepared. Everything in the house needs to be boxed if it’s not furniture. Large artwork can be pad wrapped and not boxed if you wish, but there should be zero loose items in the house. Packing loose items in the truck will take away from how much room you will have to stack in the truck as well as put your items at risk for breaking or being damaged. Being prepared inside the house is important but you also want the correct tools for the job. Make sure to use e-track straps or ratchet straps as well as heavy furniture blankets. Your straps should have a safe top working load limit of at least 2,000 lbs and a break strength of at least 5,000 lbs. If you have really light weight furniture you can get away with much less. Remember, it’s not just the weight you are holding, but the force of that weight when the truck is driving around. A 100 pound upright entertainment piece can become a 1,000 pound wrecking ball with enough force from a hard turn.

Now that you have your truck and you are fighting back the thoughts of wishing you had just hired Move On for our moving and packing services, you are ready to get to work. The last thing you want to do is just start grabbing stuff and putting inside the truck. There are a different strategies to use, we will highlight two that are most common. 1st Strategy: You want to start with your largest pieces first. An armoire is a perfect example of what to place first. If you have large dressers that can be stacked you can also start there. Pack the truck from left to right. After filling the front of the box (closest to the truck cab) start a wall of boxes in front of the furniture. Make sure to utilize all space on the truck if it is going to be a tight squeeze, this means floor to ceiling. After you have all of your boxes stacked, create a wall in front of your boxes with large furniture. Make sure you use 2 or 3 straps to secure this wall of furniture. Now you almost have everything in the truck. The very end of the truck is typically going to look the messiest, but that’s ok. The end is the best place for your grill, lawnmower, bicycles or anything else that you can’t mix with the furniture and boxes. The end of the truck is also a great place to save for that fragile china hutch. Once you get to the end of the truck, and your wall of boxes and furniture has been secured with the straps, you can reserve room for your fragile piece to be secured. When securing a fragile piece, make sure it has first been pad wrapped thoroughly and correctly first, then strap the piece to the wall with the furniture’s back against the wall.

2nd Strategy: Stack boxes first, in the front of the truck. Next, create a wall with furniture stacked from floor to ceiling in front of the boxes. The same principles from above can be applied to this strategy.

A few extra tips: Make sure to empty any oil or gas out of items. Never carry propane tanks in the box of the truck, transport those in the cab of the truck or in your personal car in a secured spot. Never leave glass shelves or pieces of any kind inside of furniture. As you load the truck, utilize straps on heavy pieces and to create walls as you go. Securing walls as you go, keeps the furniture from getting loose and crashing when there is extra room in the back of the truck.

Like we mentioned in the beginning. Loading a truck is an art form and we could write a 50 page manual for all the do’s and don’ts, but this is a great outline that should help you load like a pro. If this all feels overwhelming, we get it, now pick that phone up and call Move On for our moving and packing services!